I was pretty excited when I found this group...I immediately felt like I would meet friends here!!
A little bit about me: my name is Lynn, and I am 40 years old. I live in rural western Maryland (Deep Creek Lake area), but am originally from The People's Republic of Ann Arbor, Michigan....land of the Hash Bash, the Naked Mile, cars, bars, and alot of weirdos. LOL.
My two biggest passions are nature and animals. I love to be outside, just taking in all the splendor....playing in the dirt, smelling the grass, meditating under my favorite tree. We have 6 acres in the country to roam around. We also have many critters....6 dogs, 8 cats, and 2 potbellied pigs....and I befriend all the other creatures that come around like deer, foxes, wild turkeys (okay, one doesn't really befriend wild turkeys...they are pretty grouchy) and black bears!
I am a Buddhist....a pretty 'lapsed' one now that I live in this area, but I occasionally go for retreat at the Bhavana Society in West Virginia. I'm what my DH calls an "Eco-Freako"...committed to saving the planet in any way I can.
I love piercings and tatoos. I have 8 piercings - 3 in each ear, my navel, and my nose (nostril stud). I have 4 tattoos so far, and am working on designs for at least 2 more. They really are addictive!
I guess I should mention weight, since this is a weight loss board. Uh, I am fat. LOL! I was thin up until around age 30, and then the pounds started piling on. Not coincidentally, that was also the time that I started thinking and acting like a "grown up".....worrying, stressing, trying to keep up with the Joneses, etc. I have really made an effort to get away from that, and my diet plan is basically to listen to my body and give it the natural fuel it needs to function and maintain a healthy weight. So far I have lost 7 pounds in less than 3 weeks.
I really hope to meet some friends here....I feel like I have alot in common with most of you!
Welcome, Bodhisatva! I see you said you're from Maryland... I used to live in VA, right outside of DC... probably a bit of a ways from where you're from, though.
Our pigs have their own little barn, but I know several people who have theirs living in their house. They are actually very clean animals, they don't stink like many people believe, and they are *incredibly* smart. The 4th smartest species on the planet, actually.....after humans, apes, and dolphins. Dogs are 10th, I think. However, there are some things to consider before you move a pig into the house:
1. Pigs love to root and chew. In spite of their intelligence, this is an instinctive behavior that it is not always possible to break them of (because they are also incredibly stubborn, lol). If they are bored, they can find ingenious ways to destroy your house. Their snouts are ridiculously tough...they can bend hogmesh fencing and dig up rocks the size of your head....so they can also root up your carpet and tear baseboards off the walls. They like to chew on electrical cords. Anything that resembles a tree or branch - like the wooden legs on your furniture - may be used as chew toys!
2. Potbellied pigs get much larger than most people realize. A petite, 40 pound pig is NOT the norm. Actually, a pig that small is an unhealthy pig....and possibly a result of irresponsible inbreeding that can lead to a host of health problems. The average potbellied pig is around 90 pounds. They are still rather compact, but it is almost impossible to move them if they don't want to! Also, there is always the chance that you may get a pig that is not pure potbelly. That happened to us! Marianne and Ginger are not litter mates, but they were the same age and size when I adopted them. Not for long.....Marianne is now typical size but Ginger weighs over 200 pounds! Turns out she is part Osobaw pig, one of the fattest wild mammals.....we feed her the same amount as Marianne, but she is just massive! LOL!
3. Health care for pigs is nothing like it is for dogs and cats. They are quite susceptible to pneumonia and other respiratory problems (especially if they live in a heated environment and go out into the cold). Females cannot be simply spayed...they must have complete hysterectomies, which is expensive (if left intact, they have a cycle very similar to a human female....they can be messy when in heat, and they get grumpy with PMS!). It is risky to sedate a pig with Valium or other common tranquilizers...you need to use Isoflurene gas. This is definitely something to keep in mind when it is time to trim their hooves, because if they are not cooperative you are screwed, haha. They are also succeptible to porcine stress syndrome; a frightened pig can actually go into cardiac arrest and die quickly. And finally, most vets know nothing about pigs and will not treat them....it is best to find a "farm vet", which is not always easy.
Now I've probably scared you off pigs forever, LOL. They are great pets....very affectionate, and it is great fun to teach them tricks....you just really need to know what you are getting into....
I love pigs too... Maybe that's from Charlotte's Web
Thanks for the great post! I wouldn't try squeezing one in my apartment though. I'll appreciate them from afar! Plus I'm not sure how the cat would react. Though they could probably share the litter box I hear.
Funny, the smilie for pig here is "ink" in colons Maybe that little pink face is really sporting a bunch of cool tats in the background... Wouldn't that be a cool name for a bar? "The Tattooed Pig"?
It's amazing what you can find on the web: there was a Muppet, red-headed Lydia the Tattooed Pig! Check her out! Woooo! All tats, including "Washington crossing the Delaware" and "the Battle of Waterloo," are by the talented Jim Henson.
Tats? Wiccans? Buddhists? Hippies? YAY!!
We are a pretty friendly, if sometimes quiet bunch. But feel free to jump in! 
I see you said you're from Maryland... I used to live in VA, right outside of DC... probably a bit of a ways from where you're from, though.
post! I wouldn't try squeezing one in my apartment though. I'll appreciate them from afar! 
Plus I'm not sure how the cat would react. Though they could probably share the litter box I hear.
